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SVA Qualification

SVA Qualification is designed to provide assurance that new organisations entering the market develop their systems and processes to the right standard.

Why do we need it?

It’s about providing assurance the systems or processes, developed outside of BSC Central Systems control, which may interact with the BSC Systems and other participant’s systems will not introduce significant risks or issues to Settlement.

To operate as any of the following types of market participant you need to complete SVA Qualification.

Supplier

Half Hourly and Non Half Hourly Data Collector

Half Hourly and Non Half Hourly Data Aggregator

Half Hourly and Non Half Hourly Meter Operator and CVA Meter Operator

Supplier Meter Registration Agent

Unmetered Supplies System Operator

Meter Administrator

How do I become Qualified?

The first step is to notify us of your intention to Qualify by sending Qualification Agreement letter. We will then get in touch with you to talk about SVA Qualification in more detail.

The process is a structured framework for self assessment, through completing the Self Assessment Document (SAD) which we will review. The SAD covers the SVA Qualification requirements you will need to meet. You will also need to provide evidence to support your responses.

Our review looks at your responses and supporting evidence and based on an assessment of the risk of the applicant, we will need to witness some testing at your site. See the Guidance on the approach to Witness testing: SVA Qualification Approach to Witnessing.

The PAB approves SVA Qualification applications based on the findings from the SAD, including your responses and evidence and the witness testing, which is presented to the PAB.

Storyboards

Storyboards are guidance documents that you can use to help you understand the requirements of SVA Qualification testing. There are two sets of storyboards:

MRA & BSC Joint Storyboards: This set covers the testing of Suppliers and SMRAs for both the BSC and Master Registration Agreement (MRA) market entry processes. It was jointly developed by ELEXON and MRASCo. Guidance can be found here: MRA Entry Process and BSC Qualification Storyboards.

SVA Re-Qualification

Qualified Persons are required to re-Qualify prior to implementing Material Changes to the systems, staff or processes used to operate their market role. Guidance on the concept of Material Change and example events which could trigger re-Qualification can be found in Material Change and Triggers for re-Qualification.

The following market participants are required to complete the re-Qualification process:

It’s similar to the SVA Qualification process though you only answer those questions affected by the change within the SAD. We then review your SAD and the evidence to support your responses.

Our review looks at your responses and evidence and then, based on an assessment of the risk of the applicant, we may need to witness some testing at your site. Like SVA Qualification, re-Qualification applications are considered by the PAB.

Do I need to pay for SVA Qualification or re-Qualification?

As an applicant, you don’t need to pay to go through the Qualification or re-Qualification process. The costs for this are recovered centrally through ELEXON’s funding mechanisms.